Weinberger MediaTrue-crime stories are all the rage on TV. Network schedules and streaming services are packed with ripped-from-the-headlines original films, long-form investigative docuseries and newsmagazine shows full of scandal, murder and intrigue.
Shows like Making a Murderer on Netflix and podcasts like Serial might have boosted the popularity and raised the profile of the genre in recent years, but true tales of the dark side of human nature have always had a presence in media.
Scott Weinberger, founder of Weinberger Media, has been bringing stories of crime and justice to the screen for decades. He is creator and executive producer of Investigation Discovery’s flagship investigative newsmagazine series On the Case With Paula Zahn (Sundays, also streaming on discovery+), which just celebrated its 25th season milestone.
“When I was a cop, I was one of the cops on the show Cops,” he says. “Having the crew ride with me while I was out patrolling on the street early in my career really gave me a sense that this is an interesting aspect to an everyday world that people really don’t get an opportunity to see. What this show did was bring that perspective to everyone’s living room.”
His experience with Cops inspired him to pitch his own idea for a reality show about the U.S. Marshals Service. His idea ended up in the hands of Don Johnson (yes, that Don Johnson), who executive-produced the scripted drama The Marshal that ran for two seasons on ABC in 1995.
Weinberger used his law enforcement insight working as a TV news reporter in Florida and New York City before establishing his production company and launching On the Case With Paula Zahn in 2007.
Weinberger believes that true-crime TV content has succeeded because it fills in the audience’s desire to get into the rarely seen investigative process that takes place between the crime and the arrest. “There is this thirst and this hunger for crime programming because of the fact that there are so many different aspects of the investigation that people are interested,” he says.
There’s also the fact that people can’t resist rubbernecking at these stories. “There is a portion of people who are like, “That is so horrible. I hope it never happens to me. But I can’t turn away from it,” he says.
Podcasting has been a tremendous boon to true-crime enthusiasts. Weinberger and Anna-Sigga Nicolazzi created and host the Webby Award winning podcast Anatomy of Murder. “I think it has introduced a whole new group and audience base to true crime,” Weinberger says. “Podcasting is so personal. A lot of people are jogging, they’re commuting, they’re cleaning their home. But you’re in their head. They’re listening on their devices, on headphones, and you are resonating your message and your stories to them directly. It feels very personal. I’ve been producing television for a very long time, but I am very excited about the podcasting platform because it becomes so personal and people are getting directly involved in everything that you do.”
This week, we’re bringing you the story of James Short, an elderly man who was savagely tortured in his home. Did his job put him in the crosshairs of danger or was it more personal?
Listen now: https://t.co/K1Rr8JGAzY pic.twitter.com/s9BmnMDXRC
— Anatomy of Murder (@AOM_Podcast) January 24, 2023
One particular Anatomy of Murder episode had listeners worldwide sending in tips about a small detail — what brand of shoe left a footprint — that police were able to use as evidence in a long-unsolved case. That level of audience engagement is something Weinberger hopes can be achieved with On the Case as well.
“We’ve done more and more cases that are unsolved because of the fact that there is an opportunity for the audience that Paula has developed on OTC to really step in and do things,” he says. “We’ve gotten calls, we’ve gotten leads, and I do think there are some good things happening in the background.”
Be the first to comment